Remember when you got that first “real” job? You were excited, inspired and ready to take on whatever.

Where did that
excited woman go?

Maybe you’re irritated with boring low-level work. Maybe you feel under appreciated and disengaged. No one says ‘thank you’ and you feel taken for granted. You watch people around you getting the opportunities you want, and you’re consistently overlooked and you don’t know why.

You ask yourself: Is it because I’m a woman? Is it because I don’t hang out with them? Do none of the leaders like me?

So you start faking it until you feel like an imposter – and eventually throw in the towel, because faking it gets old real quick.

You just want to do work that keeps you inspired and interested. You want work that allows you to have really cool experiences by yourself or with family and friends, while having the chance to make enough money to retire. You just want to survive.

Sound familiar? Yeah, I’ve been there too.

Seven years ago, I went through a transformation. Sometimes I still can’t believe my journey: a homeowner at 24, a six figure earner by 26 and a Fortune 50 VP by 34. And I still have a life, date and have friends.

Let me start at the beginning: I’m a NYC girl born and raised in the Bronx. My Mom grew up on a farm in Jackson, Mississippi during Segregation and my Dad is from West Africa.

For years I was the only woman in meetings and often the youngest. At 25, I was surrounded by (much older, male) VPs deciding the fate of people’s careers and I was expected to have a point of view. I remember how strange it felt not to have other women in these conversations.

Along my journey, I’ve seen many talented women opt out of the leadership pipeline. They got discouraged and tired and didn’t have the internal and external support system they needed when navigating corporate life got tough.

To this day, my heart breaks a little every time I see a talented women resign — because 9 times out of 10, she didn’t have to. That’s why I started this site: to change the ratios of female leaders in Corporate America. We are talented and diverse with the power to make changes.

I promise you: you can have a corporate career that taps into your strengths, gives you amazing experiences, and allows you to build wealth.

Being a leader is a blessing to me. Imagine knowing that everyday you have the ability to positively impact the lives of your team and their families. Imagine inspiring them to be more and achieve more because they see you. It’s humbling and inspiring.

I want you to feel that too. We need you.

Key decisions that affect women everyday in the workplace are being made without you because you’re absent from the leadership conversation. By claiming your spot in these key influential roles, you have an opportunity to change the entire landscape of what leadership looks like. You can give a voice and empower other women, so your daughters and future granddaughters don’t have to be invited to “lean in” – they’re already there. This is the kind of stuff that changes the world. Don’t you want to be a part of that?

Ok, I know you may be doubting yourself. “That’s just her.” “She’s luckier than me.” “She had a connection.” And so on. No, I’m not lucky (but I am blessed) and I had no connections whatsoever when I started.

Through risky experiences, mentors and my own f*ck ups, I learned. And I want to teach you the universal unwritten corporate playbook. No matter what function or industry, this works. My goal is to empower you with humor, strategy, confidence and love.

So, let’s break those glass ceilings together.

XO,Adwoa

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